University of Colorado Boulder closed Thursday due to severe flooding

The University of Colorado Boulder campus will be closed Thursday, Sept. 12, 2013 due to effects of severe flooding and the ongoing weather emergency.

CU police officers have been checking building exteriors looking for safety hazards.

Assessments of damage have been ongoing throughout the evening and will continue into the morning hours. The CU-Boulder leadership will evaluate re-opening the campus after the impact of the storm on campus infrastructure has been fully assessed.

Crews from CU-Boulder Facilities Management have been checking building interiors and assessing damage. At this time, there is some water damage to numerous buildingsincluding Theatre, Norlin Library, and the Koelbel business building, as well as the Research Lab 2 and Research Lab 4 buildings on the east campus.

Initial assessments indicate that most of the water damage is minor, though it may take several days to dry out areas with fans.

Residence halls with flooding damage on the ground floor include a few units in Reed and Crosman Halls. Those residents have been relocated to other units within the same buildings.

As a precautionary measure, residents in Faculty/Staff Court, Athens Court and ground floor units in Newton Court were evacuated Wednesday evening. The evacuations affected 234 units, displacing approximately 400 to 500 CU graduate students, faculty, staff and their families. It is not yet known when residents will be able to return to the complex.

At this time there is only one report of an injury. On Wednesday night, a woman broke her ankle while playing “slip and slide” on Farrand Field.

Once damage is fully assessed, Chancellor DiStefano and his cabinet will make a determination on whether campus will be open on Friday.